Athletic apparel outer garment

ABSTRACT

An athletic apparel outer garment is provided for use with a portable electronic device. The outer garment has a waistband formed from elastically deformable material and a carrying space formed between the waistband and an at least partially sheer outer panel. The carrying space has an aperture and is located at a front portion of the waistband. The carrying space is adapted to receive, via the aperture, the portable electronic device, with a display of the portable electronic device facing outwardly, such that the display of the portable electronic device is viewable and operable by a user through the outer panel, e.g., during exercise,

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation-In-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/684,436, filed on Nov. 23, 2012, all of the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an athletic apparel outer garment adapted for use with a portable electronic device, such as a smartphone or mp3 music player.

BACKGROUND

It is common for athletes and people exercising to carry portable electronic devices such as mobile cell phones, smartphones and mp3 players, allowing them to listen to music or make phone calls while exercising. Because it is typically undesirable or impractical to hold the device while exercising, the devices are often carried in a pocket of their exercise garment. However, pockets in exercise garments are often difficult to access due to their location or tight fit and this makes it difficult or inconvenient to operate the device during exercise, requiring the user to stop and remove the device from their pocket in order to operate it.

Other carrying devices are also known for storing portable electronic devices during exercise, such as fanny packs and other strap on cases. However, these cases often enclose the portable, electronic device or are located in difficult to access locations, preventing or inhibiting proper operation of the device during exercise.

SUMMARY

In a first aspect, the present disclosure provides an athletic apparel outer garment designed to be used with a portable electronic device. The outer garment includes a waistband formed from elastically deformable material, and a carrying space formed between the waistband and an at least partially sheer outer panel. The carrying space has an aperture and is located at a front portion of the waistband. Further, when provided, the portable electronic device is insertable into the carrying space via the aperture, with a display of the portable electronic device facing outwardly, such that the display of the portable electronic device is viewable and operable by a user through the outer panel during use.

In a second aspect, the present disclosure provides an athletic apparel outer garment and a portable electronic device . The garment includes a waistband formed from elastically deformable material, and a carrying space formed between the waistband and an at least partially sheer outer panel. The carrying space has an aperture and is located at a front portion of the waistband The portable electronic device is insertable into the carrying space via the aperture, with a display of the portable electronic device facing outwardly, such that the display of the portable electronic device is viewable and operable by a user through the outer panel during exercise.

In an embodiment, the aperture is formed on the outside of the waistband and is accessible from outside the outer garment.

Additionally, the aperture may be elastically deformable and, in an undeformed state, the aperture may be smaller than a width of the carrying space, thereby retaining the portable electronic device within the carrying space. In a deformed state, the aperture may expand to a size sufficient to allow the portable electronic device to be inserted into and removed from the carrying space.

In an embodiment, the outer panel may be sufficiently sheer to allow direct contact between a user's finger and the display of the portable electronic device, so as to allow operation of a capacitive touchscreen of the portable electronic device.

For example, the outer panel may be sufficiently sheer to provide about 50% visibility of the display panel of the portable electronic device. Further, the outer panel has a linear fiber density of about 30 denier or less, which may yield the visibility (or opacity) desired, e.g., about 50% visibility. Moreover, a portion of the outer panel may be sheer, while another portion may be opaque or substantially opaque.

Moreover, the carrying space may be generally rectangular, with a longest dimension extending in a circumferential direction of the waistband, and formed by seaming the outer panel to the waistband along a top edge, a bottom edge and opposing side edges, the aperture being provided at or near one of the side edges.

Additionally, embodiments of the disclosure may provide a garment including a waistband configured to fit around a waist of a user, and an outer panel secured to the waistband. The outer panel includes a sheer portion. Further, the outer panel and the waistband together define a carrying space therebetween, and an aperture communicating with the carrying space. Additionally, the aperture is configured to receive a portable electronic device therethrough to the carrying space, and the sheer portion of the outer panel is configured to allow viewing of a display of the portable electronic device through the outer panel.

It will be appreciated that the foregoing summary is provided merely to introduce some aspects of embodiments of the disclosure. These aspects and others will be more fully described below. Accordingly, this summary is not to be considered limiting on the scope of the disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

An embodiment of the disclosure will now be described by way of specific example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 depicts an athletic apparel outer garment;

FIG. 2 depicts the athletic apparel outer garment of FIG. 1 receiving a portable electronic device;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view depicting a carrying space of the garment of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 depicts an alternative athletic apparel garment;

FIG. 5 depicts a further alternative athletic apparel garment;

FIG. 6 depicts a further alternative athletic apparel garment;

FIG. 7 depicts a further alternative athletic apparel garment; and

FIG. 8 depicts a further alternative athletic apparel garment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An athletic apparel outer garment 100 designed to be used with a portable electronic device 102 is depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, according to an embodiment. The garment 100 has a waistband 104 and a generally rectangular diaphanous or sheer outer panel 106 overlaying the waistband 104. The waistband 104 may be formed from elastically deformable material, such as an elastomer, and may extend around the periphery of a waist region of the garment 100. Further, the waistband 104 may include a hem of the garment 100. The sheer outer panel 106 may be formed from sheer spandex or another sheer, elastically deformable material. Further, although not depicted, the outer panel 106 may also include one or more regions that are less sheer, e.g., substantially opaque. In the apparel industry, a material is generally considered to be sheer if it has linear fiber density of about 30 denier or less.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a carrying space 108 may be located at a front portion 110 of the waistband 104 and may be adapted to receive and store a portable electronic device 102. The carrying space 108 may be formed between the waistband 104 and the sheer outer panel 106. An aperture 112, depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2 as a vertical slot, may provide access to the carrying space 108 and allow a portable electronic device 102 to be inserted, as depicted in FIG. 2. The carrying space 108 may be designed to receive the portable electronic device 102 via the aperture 112 with a display 114 of the portable electronic device 102 facing outwardly.

The sheer outer panel 106 is sufficiently sheer to allow the display 114 of the portable electronic device 102 to be viewable and operable by a user through the sheer outer panel 106 during exercise or any other use or duration during which the electronic device 102 is stored in the carrying space 108. The sheer outer panel 106 may be sufficiently sheer to provide at least about 50% visibility of the display screen 114, meaning that at least about 50% of the light emanating from the display screen 114 passes through the sheer outer panel 106. Moreover, the sheer outer panel 106 may be sufficiently sheer to allow direct contact between a user's finger and the display screen 114 of the portable electronic device 102, so as to allow operation of a capacitive touchscreen 114 of the portable electronic device 102. Operation of a resistive touchscreen 114 of the portable electronic device 102 may also be possible through the sheer outer panel 106.

In an embodiment, the aperture 112 may be elastically deformable to retain the portable electronic device 102 within the carrying space 108 when the aperture 112 is in an undeformed state and smaller than the width of the carrying space 108 and to allow the portable electronic device 102 to be inserted into, or removed from, the carrying space 108 when the aperture 112 is stretched to be larger than the width of the portable electronic device 102. In another embodiment, as depicted in FIG. 4, the garment 100 may have an aperture 112 that is selectively closable by way of a zip mechanism 112 to retain the portable electronic device 102 within the carrying space 108. In other embodiments, the aperture 112 may be selectively closable by other mechanisms such as hook-and-loop fasteners (e.g., VELCRO®), laces, buttons, press studs, etc.

The garments depicted in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4 are athletic pants. However, as depicted in FIGS. 5 and 6, the garment 100 may be any of a number of different athletic apparel outer garments, including skirts, shorts, shirts, singlets, jackets or other garments with a waistband 104.

As depicted in FIG. 5, the garment 100 may include multiple carrying spaces 108 and the carrying spaces 108 may be dimensioned to snugly fit popular sizes of portable electronic devices 102, such as smartphones, digital storage and playback devices (e.g., MP3 players), etc. In order to snugly contain the portable electronic device 102 within the carrying space 108, the sheer outer panel 106 may be stitched, seamed or otherwise secured to the waistband 104 along a top border 120 and a bottom border 122, which extend in a circumferential direction of the waistband 104, and opposing side borders 124 that extend generally vertically, forming a generally rectangular carrying space 108. in an embodiment, the longest dimension of the carrying space 108 may be in the circumferential direction of the waistband 104 between the side borders 124. This configuration may allow the portable electronic device 102 to be oriented with its length dimension in a generally horizontal direction when a user stands upright Adjacent carrying spaces 108 may be divided by the side borders 124. The aperture 112 may be located on one of the side borders 124, but, in other embodiments, may be provided in various locations such as along the top or bottom borders and either internally or externally of the garment 100. Each carrying space 108 may also have multiple apertures 112, such as one at each side border 124.

In one particular alternative embodiment, depicted in FIG. 6, the aperture and zip mechanism 112 may be provided on multiple side borders 124 and multiple adjacent carrying spaces 108 may be provided on the same waistband 104 of the garment 100.

As depicted in FIG. 7, the aperture 112 may be provided at or near the top border 120 of the carrying space 108.

As depicted in FIG. 8, the sheer outer panel 106 may not extend the entire periphery of the waistband 104, but rather, the sheer outer panel 106 may overlay only a discrete portion of the waistband 104. As shown, the sheer outer panel 106 forms a discrete carrying space 108, that extends along the waistband 104 only between two side borders 124 with an aperture and zip mechanism 112 located at one of the side borders 124.

The width of the sheer outer panel 106 and hence, the carrying space 108, is dimensioned to accommodate common mobile phone devices such as the IPHONE® and BLACKBERRY®. While width dimensions for these devices may vary considerably, these devices may have width dimensions of from about 60 mm to about 70 mm.

The garment 100 allows a user to secure a portable electronic device 102 in the carrying space 108, behind the sheer outer panel 106 during exercise or other use. The elastically deformable material forming the carrying space 108 and the garment 100 allows the portable electronic device 102 to be retained snugly in the garment 100 against the user's body, inhibiting movement of the portable electronic device 102 relative to the user. The location and orientation of the carrying space 108 at the waistband 104 places the portable electronic device 102 in the waist area of the user, with the length dimension of the portable electronic device 102 extending generally horizontally. As the waist area of a user is an area that remains reasonably stable during most exercise activities, the portable electronic device 102 may be less likely to be restrictive or inconvenient in that location and orientation than in other areas on the body. In addition, the portable electronic device 102 may be less likely to be damaged by free weights in this position. The waist area location is also convenient for the user to view and operate the portable electronic device 102, which can be done by simply tilting the portable electronic device 102 so that the display screen 114 faces upwardly

The sheer nature of the sheer outer panel 106 allows the user to not only view the display screen 114 of the portable electronic device 102 but also operate the touchscreen of the portable electronic device 102 without removing the portable electronic device 102 from the carrying space 108. This allows the user to easily operate the portable electronic device 102 while continuing to exercise. In addition, when the screen is not on (i.e., when no light is being emitted from the screen), the portable electronic device 102 may be obscured behind the sheer outer panel 106 and is not visible.

Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of the disclosure are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as possible. Any numerical value, however, inherently contains certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements. Moreover, all ranges disclosed herein are to be understood to encompass any and all sub-ranges subsumed therein.

While the present teachings have been illustrated with respect to one or more implementations, alterations and/or modifications may be made to the illustrated examples without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims. In addition, while a particular feature of the present teachings may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular function. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms “including,” “includes,” “having,” “has,” “with,” or variants thereof are used in either the detailed description and the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising.” Further, in the discussion and claims herein, the term “about” indicates that the value listed may be somewhat altered, as long as the alteration does not result in nonconformance of the process or structure to the illustrated embodiment. Finally, “exemplary” indicates the description is used as an example, rather than implying that it is an ideal.

Other embodiments of the present teachings will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the present teachings disclosed herein. it is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of the present teachings being indicated by the following claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An athletic apparel outer garment for use with a portable electronic device, the outer garment comprising: a waistband formed at least partially from elastically deformable material; and a carrying space formed between the waistband and an at least partially sheer outer panel, the carrying space having an aperture and being located at a front portion of the waistband, wherein the garment is configured such that the portable electronic device is insertable into the carrying space via said aperture, with a display of the portable electronic device facing outwardly, such that the display of the portable electronic device is viewable and operable by a user through the outer panel during exercise.
 2. The athletic apparel outer garment of claim 1, wherein the aperture is formed on the outside of the waistband and is accessible from outside the outer garment.
 3. The athletic apparel outer garment of claim 1, wherein the aperture is elastically deformable and in an undeformed state, the aperture is smaller than a width of the carrying space, to retain the portable electronic device within the carrying space, and in a deformed state, the aperture expands in size to allow the portable electronic device to be inserted into and removed from the carrying space.
 4. The athletic apparel outer garment of claim 1, wherein the outer panel is sufficiently sheer to allow direct contact between a user's finger and the display of the portable electronic device, so as to allow operation of a capacitive touchscreen of the portable electronic device.
 5. The athletic apparel outer garment of claim 1, wherein the outer panel is sufficiently sheer to provide 50% visibility of the display panel of the portable electronic device.
 6. The athletic apparel device of claim 1, wherein the outer panel has linear fiber density of about 30 denier or less.
 7. The athletic apparel outer garment of claim 1, wherein the carrying space is generally rectangular, with a longest dimension extending in a circumferential direction of the waistband, and formed by seaming the outer panel to the waistband along a top edge, a bottom edge and opposing side edges, the aperture being provided at or near one of the side edges.
 8. An athletic apparel outer garment and a portable electronic device designed to be used in combination, the garment comprising: a waistband formed from elastically deformable material; and a carrying space formed between the waistband and an at least partially sheer outer panel, the carrying space having an aperture and being located at a front portion of the waistband. wherein the portable electronic device is insertable into the carrying space via said aperture, with a display of the portable electronic device facing outwardly, such that the display of the portable electronic device is viewable and operable by a user through the outer panel during exercise.
 9. The athletic apparel outer garment and portable electronic device of claim 8, wherein the aperture is formed on the outside of the waistband and is accessible from outside the outer garment.
 10. The athletic apparel outer garment and portable electronic device of claim 8, wherein the aperture is elastically deformable and in an undeformed state, the aperture is smaller than a width of the portable electronic device, enabling the portable electronic device to be retained within the carrying space, and in a deformed state, the aperture is able to expand to a sire sufficient to allow the portable electronic device to be inserted into and removed from the carrying space.
 11. The athletic apparel outer garment and portable electronic device of claim 8, wherein the outer panel is sufficiently sheer to allow direct contact between a user's finger and the display of the portable electronic device, so as to allow operation of a capacitive touchscreen of the portable electronic device.
 12. The athletic apparel outer garment and portable electronic device of claim 8, wherein the outer panel is sufficiently sheer to provide 50% visibility of the display panel of the portable electronic device.
 13. The athletic apparel device and portable electronic device of claim 8, wherein the outer panel has linear fiber density of about 30 denier or less,
 14. The athletic apparel outer garment and portable electronic device of claim 8, wherein the carrying space is generally rectangular, with a longest dimension extending in a circumferential direction of the waistband, and formed by seaming the outer panel to the waistband along a top edge, a bottom edge and opposing side edges, the aperture being provided at or near one of the side edges.
 15. An outer garment, comprising: a waistband configured to fit around a waste of a user; and an outer panel secured to the waste band, wherein the outer panel comprises a sheer portion, wherein the outer panel and the waistband together define a carrying space therebetween and an aperture communicating with the carrying space, the aperture being configured to receive a portable electronic device therethrough to the carrying space, and wherein the sheer portion of the outer panel is configured to allow viewing of a display of the portable electronic device through the outer panel.
 16. The garment of claim 15, wherein the carrying space has a circumferential dimension, extending along the waistband, and a vertical dimension extending generally perpendicular to the waistband, wherein the circumferential dimension is greater than the vertical dimension.
 17. The garment of claim 15, wherein the sheer portion of the outer panel is configured to allow operation of a capacitive touchscreen of the display of the portable electronic device.
 18. The garment of claim 17, wherein the sheer portion has a linear fiber density of less than about 30 denier.
 19. The garment of claim 15, wherein the sheer portion allows about 50% visibility of a display of the portable electronic device, when a portable electronic device is received in the carrying space. 